Supervisors approve $50M contract for detention health services

On Tuesday, May 15, the Pima County Board of Supervisors unanimously approved a $50.6 million three-year contract with Centurion Detention Health Services for the provision of health services at the Pima County adult and juvenile detention centers.

For the past decade, Pima County has contracted with Correct Care Solutions, formally known as Conmed Healthcare Management, Inc., to provide physical and behavioral health services to detainees at the Pima County Adult Detention Center and the Pima County Juvenile Detention Center. However, the contract with the current provider expires June 30, 2018 and is not eligible for renewal.

To fulfill the County’s legal obligation to provide health services to individuals in custody, the Pima County Behavioral Health Department, on behalf of the Sheriff’s Department and Juvenile Court, initiated a procurement process in November 2017 to select a new provider. Of the four bids received, the Evaluation Committee, which consisted of five employees from the Sheriff’s Department, Juvenile Court, and Behavioral Health, gave Centurion the highest ranking based on its plan, cost, experience, management and staff turnover, references, and financial viability.

The three-year contract with Centurion begins July 1 and ends June 30, 2021.
In addition to providing health services to detainees at both detention facilities, this contract will provide ancillary psychological services to the Sheriff’s Department.